Ban sought on plastic microbeads commonly used in cosmetics

By Paula Reid

Updated on: February 12, 2014 / 12:13 PM
/ CBS News

New York state seeks to become the first in the nation to ban
plastic microbeads commonly found in cosmetics after the tiny plastic beads
have been found accumulating at “alarmingly high levels” in New York waterways.

Microbeads are commonly used as an abrasive in over 100
products, including facial scrubs, soaps, shampoo and toothpaste. The Microbead-Free Waters Act, which was
introduced Tuesday, would prohibit the production, manufacture, distribution
and sale in New York of any beauty products, containing plastic particles less
than five millimeters in size.

When they wash down the drain, the tiny beads wind up in
sewer systems and their small size and buoyancy helps them easily escape sewage
plants to be discharged into rivers, lakes and oceans.

“Many waterbirds mistake plastics for food -- or are
susceptible to bioaccumulation of plastic in the fish they eat -- with
detrimental effect, including decreased food-absorption and starvation,” said
Erin Crotty, Executive Director of Audubon New York and Vice President of the
National Audubon Society.

“Half of all plastics collected on the surface of Lake
Erie were the perfectly spherical, multi-colored beads identical to the
microbeads used in beauty products. Other plastics collected included larger
plastic litter that had broken down in the environment, such as detergent
bottles and Styrofoam,” the attorney general said in a press release today.

The proposed legislation comes after cosmetics companies
including Procter & Gamble, Unilever, Johnson & Johnson, and
Colgate-Palmolive have already committed to phasing out the use of microbeads
in their products.

Bu some argue that this proposed legislation is long
overdue.

David Andrews, a senior scientist at the Environmental
Working Group which specializes in environmental research and advocacy, says
“It is really quite concerning that a number of the major cosmetics
manufacturers had designed products that released into the environment
materials that do not degrade and could accumulate.”

But, Andrews also believes that state-based legislation
is the best hope for increased regulation of cosmetics. “It is important for the states to take a
lead in the regulation of cosmetic ingredients, especially with the lack of
strong federal regulation to ensure cosmetic ingredients are safe for both the
public and the environment,” he said.

Long Island assemblyman Robert K. Sweeney joined Schneiderman in introducing this legislation and believes all voters
will find a common cause in this bill. “I never met anyone who has wanted
plastic on their face or in their fish,” he said.